When 17-year-old Emily Browne woke up this morning, she had no clue her life would change. Failing to keep a boyfriend and screwing up a chance with a crush, she tries to run away from it all and get a hold of herself before she makes another mistake.

This
is the part that was confusing me. I didn't understand why I always
came here. Camping wasn't one of my favorite vacations and yet, I
was here. Lake Kelpie, or Crappie to the locals who live a couple of
miles down the road from the there. This was our last camping trip
before junior high. It was our last day of the vacation, but still a
while before we were scheduled to leave. I had survived another trip
of camping without being eaten by a bear or chewed on by coyotes. I
decided to visit the lake before we left. It was cold outside, maybe
50 to 60, definitely not swimming weather. There was still some fog
that stayed above the lake and yet, I could still see the island in
the middle of the lake where sat a big rock, a couple of small trees,
and sand. As I continued to look at the lake, I realized something. I
figured out that in all the times we had come here to camp, not once
did I swim or bathe in the lake.

Shrugging
my shoulders, I began to pull off my shirt and shorts, leaving me in
my bikini that was lime green with black mini hearts on it. I stepped
up near the shore line and tested the water with my toes. It was
colder than I would like it to be, but it was swimmable to the point
where I wouldn't freeze to death. I walked slowly into the water
until it hit my midsection. From there, I pushed off the bottom of
the lake and began to swim towards the middle. I didn't want to go
too far because I was still tired from yesterday's hike. As the
water reached up to my chin, I forced my body upward and began to
float on the surface.

Floating
on the lake was peaceful. No one was out here on boats or jet skis.
Just me. As I looked up at the sun, it hung in the middle of the sky.
Midday. I sighed and rolled over in the water already swimming back
to shore. I crawled up onto the soft sand to dry. I closed my eyes
and thought of home. I didn't realize that I had fallen asleep, but
once I came to, someone had come to the lake.

A
figure stood over me and blocked the sun. "You'll burn in you
don't flip over, love."

I
was startled and knocked back to focus. I started to panic then.
"What time is it?" I asked still groggy.

"3:45,
I imagine."

"Crap."
I stood up and began to look around for my clothes. I spotted them at
the base of a tree. Picking everything up save my flip-flops, I
looked back at the figure and yelled to him. "Thanks for waking me
up."

"Anytime,
love."



I woke up to the
blinding rays of the sun, escaping from my blinds on my window. Light
spilled into my room as I pulled the string down to raise the blinds
up. This was strange to me. Beautiful Washington, but where I live,
it rains, a lot. I guess this is its way saying goodbye to school.
The last day of school and I was already starting off with a bad
night's sleep. Still tired, I hopped into the shower and began top
get ready for school. I trudged down the stairs and into the kitchen.

"Morning,
dear." My mother said cheerfully.

"Morning, Mom." My
greeting was not so joyous.

"Are you working
today?" It was a simple question, but my mind wasn't focusing.

"Yeah, I'll be
home really late. I'm closing." Now she won't ask questions.
The truth was, I had actually spoken to my boss beforehand about
having today off. The last day of junior year. The summer before our
senior year. 'Super exciting!' as Ducky would say. Ducky is my
best friend. She and I are twins separated at birth. Well not
literally, but basically.

My mother, I assumed,
didn't have the slightest idea of what I was planning on doing
tonight, but I did. Or at least I thought so. See, life is like
Egyptian War—where you need to have all the cards in your hand to
win--, you don't always win unless you have good hand-eye
coordination. Let's just pretend you don't for the analogy.
Anyways, things can be unpredictable in Egyptian War, but probability
is what makes the game.

I looked over at the
clock to check the time. "I should get going, Mom."

Mom just smiled and nodded. "Will you be coming home before work?"

I
thought about the question. "Yeah, I'll need my uniform." I
walked out the door before Mom could ask another question.

The
air outside was cool, but I could already tell that today was going
to be at least overcast. My car sat on the driveway, dew clinging to
the metal. It was a purple-gray, 2005 Mitsubishi Gallant. It was
pretty. As I unlocked the door, I watched someone speed by into the
neighborhood. Crazy people…

The
engine quietly came to life and my seat began to warm, as I put the
seat warmer on low. With the push of a button, the defrosters had my
window crystal clear and, by then, the car warm. I slowly backed out
onto the street and headed towards school.

I
lived about 10 miles from school. My mom didn't mind since it was
one of the better public schools in the district. A lot of kids there
went to middle school and elementary school together. There were only
a few people I knew from middle school. Two of them I didn't talk
to and the other, well, was in the popular group.

I
turned into the school parking lot, scanning it for a spot. My mind
kept revolving about my dream, and I couldn't figure out why. Being
so distracted, I didn't see what happened next. All I know is that,
it scared the shit out of me. I stopped suddenly and glanced up at
the hands that slapped down on my hood. There he was, Oliver LaRue.
My crush. I looked up in awe as he walked to the side of my car and
let me park. I parked the car and waited a few moments before
getting out. Grabbing my messenger bag, I opened the car door
cautiously, looking around to see if the coast was clear. I figured
Oliver had left by now since he was way too cool to pay attention to
me.

Surprisingly,
I found him sitting on the back of the car next to me. Crap, I
have to pass him…I thought to myself. I let some hair fall over
my face, hiding my profile. It had been the first time he saw me all
year. I always ducked out of sight and watched from a distance. He
stared at me as I passed by.

"Hey
Emily..." I stopped at my name. No, he wasn't talking to me. It
was the other Emily in my Calculus class that he sits behind. Not me,
Emily Browne. "Emily Browne. That is your name, right?" My heart
raced as I turned around slowly and looked up at him. Oliver LaRue,
5'11", pale-skinned, blonde, curly and untamed hair, with blue
eyes and a white smile. He was the track and the cross-country star.
I was so nervous that I stuttered slightly.

"Y-yes."
I spat out.

He
looked at me funny and laughed slightly. "I remember you from Jr.
High. You were so confident. Always in people's faces. So what are
you now? A turtle?"

I
blushed a rosy red color that blended with my scarf. "Yeah, I guess
you could call it that." I bit my lip and looked at him. He jumped
off the car he had been sitting on and placed his arm around my
shoulders.

"Aren't
you in one of my classes, Emily Browne?" We started walking to the
school building. I blushed again as I felt his body heat. He was so
warm and he was only wearing a thin zip-up sweatshirt. I was freezing
and had on six layers of clothing.

"Actually,
we have five out of six classes together."

He
looked at me funny again. "Oh, then how come I never see you?"

I
turned away from him and looked over towards the track. "I always
sit in the back corner."

He
smiled and laughed as we neared the cafeteria. "You are an
observant little turtle, aren't you Emily Browne?" He laughed
again and took his arm off my shoulder. "See you around Emily
'Turtle' Browne." He walked off towards his first period class
and left me stunned and frozen on the stairs near the office. The
warning bell rang and knocked me out of my trance. I rushed to my
first period class, library teacher assistant, with my best friend,
Ashleigh, or Ducky to me. I walked in with a second to spare and
glided around the counter. "Hey Turtle." I looked at her. I
smiled slightly, but I had too much to think about to ask questions.
"Hey Ducky…" I said it in a tone with "don't ask me what
just happened."

Ducky
looked at me and went into 'best friend don't be a bitch' mode.
"What happened before first period?"

Instead
of answering her question, I came at her with one of my own
mind-boggling questions. "Do you know how Oliver LaRue knew my
nickname that you only use?"

Ashleigh
looked at me like I was mental. "So that's what happened."

I
blushed as I started to check in books. "Kind of. By the way,
whose class is coming in?" I started for a cart and loaded up half
of my overflowing section of books, fiction.

"Um,
Mrs.… Barbinker for U.S. History." Ick. I hate that teacher. She
didn't like me very much either I guess since I am getting a "C"
in the class. I sighed and rolled the cart over to my section and
began to put away my books. The phone rang and I rushed to answer it.

"Roger
Williams Library. Student speaking." It was Mrs. Barbinker.

"Yes,
tell the librarian that my class is not coming and that we'll have
to reschedule." I wrote the message on a piece of paper.

"I'll
tell her when she gets back, Mrs. Barbinker." I hung up the phone
and handed Ashleigh a butt-load of passes that the library gave to
people whose books were still out. "From me to you. Have fun!"
She looked at me with desperation. "Bye, bye!" I said and pushed
her out the door. I went back to putting away my section when I heard
the door. I glanced at the person's shoes to make sure it wasn't
Ducky.

You'll
burn if you don't flip over, love. A flash of black low-top
converse shoes appeared in my mind. I was confused. Am I hearing
things? This memory of shoes. At this time? My face flushed as I
shook my head and tried to recover. "Sign in on the sheet and leave
your pass up on the counter." I didn't look at the person, not
completely sure if my face had stopped flushing, but I heard
footsteps coming towards me. When they sounded closer, I had started
to put away my books again. "Can I help you?" I asked without
looking over my shoulder.

"Yeah,
I need to find a fiction book for the summer." I tensed at the
sound of his voice. I stood up from my crouch on the floor and turn
to face Oliver.

"Fiction?"
I asked, my voice cracking.

"Yeah,
do you have anything interesting?" He flashed his smile at me and
my heart skipped a beat.

"Depends
on what you think is interesting."

Oliver
stood there and caught my eye. "Something with adventure."

I
knew the perfect book. "How about this one?" I pulled out a book
from the shelf.

Oliver
looked over it quickly, skimming the description. "It looks great,
thanks. You have a great eye for books."

I
blushed at the compliment. "Thank you."

Oliver
looked at the book and graced me with another smile. "I'll have
to read it over summer break." Walking away from me, he turned his
head and smiled. "Pleasure doing business with you, love." As he
walked through the door, he called out. "See you around, Turtle."
I fell back into one of the bean bags in the library and tried to
catch my breath. Just as I sat down, Ducky came through the door.

"Hey
Lazy Turtle. Get back to work!" Ducky yelled from the door.

"Sorry,
I'm on it." I rushed back to my books and put them away quickly.
At least she didn't ask me anymore questions. I don't think I
could handle anymore today. The bell rang and ended first period. I
gathered my things and headed over to my second period, English. My
heart started racing again as I reached the door. I opened it to find
out that he wasn't there. I sighed in relief. I'm not so sure my
heart would have been able to handle it. I hurried to my seat and
began pulling out my notebook and pen.

"So
this is where you sit, love." Oliver looked over at the desk next
to me that had been empty all year. "I think I'll sit here for
today." I couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Are
you doing this because I almost ran you over this morning?!" I
blurted out. The girl in front of me gave me a strange look of
question. I blushed from embarrassment. I placed my head and arms on
the desk, wishing I was dead.

"No,
Turtle, I'm doing this because you're a funny character." I
looked up and stared at him. The teacher walked in at that moment and
class started. I pulled out my book and began reading from where I
left off last night. The teacher didn't have anything for us since
today was the last day, so free time was our time. Something poked my
side, but I didn't pay attention to it. It poked me again and again
until I looked up and saw Oliver using his pencil to poke me.

"What?"
I whispered.

"Do
you want to eat lunch with me?"

I
looked at him like he was psycho. "I leave before then."

He
just smiled. "Me too."

I
blushed and covered my face again. "Are you saying you want to take
me to lunch?"

He
flashed another smile at me. "Yes."

I
smiled and thought about it. "Maybe some other time."

His
face looked somewhat disappointed. "Anytime, love." My mind
rushed at his words. What did it mean? I couldn't think. The bell
rang then and I stood to leave. The rest of the day went by in a
blur. Soon, the bell had rung for the final time to let everyone be
free from school and enter summer vacation.

As
I walked out to my car, a figure sat in a car on the curb, idling. I
rushed towards it, instantly knowing whose car it was. I tried to
open the door, but it was locked.

The
passenger side window rolled down and a face I recognized leaned
across the gap. "Hey, Kitten." His eyes peered into mine.

"Hey,
Mike. Baby, what are you doing here?" My face was slightly flushed.

"I
had to talk to you before I went."

My
face formed a confusing smile. "Going? Going where?"

"I
skipping town, babe. Life here just ain't me. And, sugar, you know
that this has got to stop."

Now
I really confused. "What has to stop?"

One
word had left my mouth hang open.

"Us."

I
shook my head trying to clear it. "What…what do you mean?"

Mike
sighed as if he was annoyed. "I mean, that we can't see each
other anymore. We're through. Kaput, gone with the wind. I'm
leaving town. You were my last stop before I went. Had to tell you.
You know, the truth is, I never loved you anyhow. You were just a
side fling. My little pick-me-up." He laughed at me with cold eyes.
"Bye, Doll face." With that, he drove off and down the street,
leaving me in the dust. My eyes began to water. I stood back a little
before the tears began pool over. As the tears fell, I began to run.

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